Monday Mumblings - Dewey family from 1648 - 1669

Today’s Dewey Mumblings picks up in Windsor, CT where we left off with Thomas Dewey the Settler dying on April 27, 1648.  When Thomas died, he left behind a 37 year old widow, Francis, with 7 children younger than 10 years old.  Two of the children, Mary (10) and Joseph (9?) were from her first marriage to Joseph Clark.  Five of the children Thomas (8), Josiah (7), Anna (5), Israel (3), and Jedidiah (1) were from her marriage to Thomas.  In 1648, the colonial settlement of Windsor was only 13 years old, so survival for Francis and family would be dependent on remarriage.  As frequently happened in those days, Francis quickly married George Phelps on November 16, 1648.  George himself was a recent widower with his wife Phillury Randall dying on April 29, 1648.  Phillury and Francis may have been sisters, (daughters of Philip and Joann (Fush) Randall).  Interestingly, Phillury’s death came 2 days after the death of Thomas Dewey making me wonder if they may have died from small pox as an “epidemic ravaged Massachusetts and most of New England in 1648.”  George and Phillury Phelps had 5 children of their own born between 1638 and 1647 when Phillury died in 1648.  So, when Widow Francis (Randall Clark) Dewey married George Phelps, they had 12 children between them, all born between 1638 and 1647.  To complicate things a bit more, George and Francis (Randall Clark Dewey) Phelps had 3 children of their own born between 1649 and 1653.  We have to admire Francis and George as they raised 15 children total to adulthood.

All these marriages and the children produced by them, resulted in many related families crossing paths many times over.  Mary Clark, daughter of Joseph and Francis (Randall Dewey Phelps) Clark married John Strong.  John along with Josiah Dewey (2^nd generation) and others founded Northampton, MA.  Several generations later, 3^rd(?) cousins once removed Anna Phelps and Simeon Dewey would marry.  Anna’s great grandfather was the above mentioned George Phelps.  Simeon Dewey’s great, great grandfather was Thomas Dewey the Settler.  Anna and Simeon are my 6^th great grandfather and grandmother.  Anna and Simeon will be discussed in a later post. 

Before moving on with the Dewey family, it is important to remember the impact of trying to settle on lands belonging to a Native American population.  The original settlers were able to maintain a working relationship with some of the local tribes but other tribes were hostile.  Conflict was always a concern.  Without the help of friendly tribes, the settlers would have died.  However, as the English population grew, the relationship with the Native Americans became stressed and reached the breaking point with the outbreak of King Philip’s War.  Tribes were forced to take sides, neutrality was not an option.  An excellent book covering relations between the Native Americans and settlers including King Philip’s War is “Mayflower A Story of Courage, Community, and War” by Nathaniel Philbrick.  As I move forward in these posts, I will occasionally mention some of the interactions between my ancestors and the Native Americans. 

Josiah and Hepzibah (Lyman) Dewey (2nd Generation)

Josiah Dewey, son of Thomas and Francis, is my next direct ancestor.  Josiah, born at Windsor, CT in 1641 and died on September 7, 1732 at Lebanon, CT.  He was seven years old when his father died.  He lived with his mother Francis and step father George Phelps in Windsor until 1660. From about 1661 to 1669, Josiah moved to and lived in Nonotuck (now Northampton, MA).  Nonotuck’s was first settled in 1653/54.  In 1661, his name (Josiah Duey) appeared in the churches covenant.  Among the other names in the covenant was Hepzibah Lyman.  Josiah and Hepzibah married November 6, 1662 in Northampton.  Richard and John Lyman were among the first settlers of Northampton owning lots on Pleasant Street.  I do not know if Richard and John were Hepzibah’s father and uncle or her brothers.

Josiah and Hepzibah had 12 children

Born at Northampton, MA:

Hepsibah (1665 - ?)

Mary (1665 – 1666)

Josiah (1666 – 1750)*

John (1669 - ?)

Born at Westfield, MA:

Ebenezer (1673 – 1711)

Nathaniel (1673 – 1711)

Elizabeth (1674 – before 1677)

Joseph (1674 – 1675)

Elizabeth (1677 - ?)

Experience (1682 - ?)

Joseph (1682 – 1682)

Benjamin (1685 – 1685)

Hepzibah Lyman was born in 1644 at Windsor, CT and died June 4, 1732 in Columbia, CT.  She was the daughter of Richard and Hepzibah (Ford) Lyman.  Her father Richard came to New England on the ship Lyon in 1631 with his parents, two brothers, and two sisters.  Her mother Hepzibah (Ford) came to New England on the ship Mary & John in 1630 with her parents and three other sisters.  Of little consequence but fun to know, descendants of Josiah Dewey and Hepzibah Lyman may be of “Royal Descent” through Hepzibah.  This was brought to my attention through the book Life of George Dewey Rear Admiral, U.S.N. (by Adelbert M. Dewey) and Dewey Family History (by Louis Marinus Dewey) where it is claimed that our ancestry goes back to Emperor Charlemagne.  I haven’t spent a lot of energy trying to confirm this, but Charles H. Browning published a book in 1891 titled Americans of Royal Descent, A Collection of Genealogies of American Families Whose Lineage is Traced to the Legitimate Issue of Kings.  On pages 425 and 426 of this book, Browning has a list of ancestors of Hepzibah (mentioning Josiah Dewey).  Here is that list:

1.    Alfred the Great, King of England, had:

2.    Edward the Elder, King of England, second son, who had:

3.    Princess Edgina (widow of Charles III., King of France), who m. secondly, Henry, third Count de Vermandois and Troyes, and had:

4.    Hubert, fourth Count de Vermandois, who had:

5.    Lady Adela de Vermandois, who m. Hugh Magnus, fifth Count de Vermandois, son of Henry I., King of France, and had:

6.    Lady Isabel de Vermandois, who m. first, Robert, first Baron de Bellomont, created Earl of Leicester, Lord Justice of England, who had:

7.    Robert, second Earl of Leicester, Lord Justice of England, who had:

8.    Robert, third Earl of Leicester, Steward of England, who had:

9.    Lady Margaret de Bellomont, who m. Saier de Quincey, created 1207, Earl of Winchester, d. 1219, and had:

10.  Roger, second Earl of Winchester, Constable of Scotland, d. 1264, who m. Lady Helen, daughter of Alan, Lord of Galloway, and had:

11.  Lady Elizabeth de Quincey, who m. Alexander, Baron Cumyn, second Earl of Buchan, son of William, Baron Cumyn, Justiciary of Scotland, 1178-80, and his wife Lady Hexilda, a granddaughter of Donal-bane, King of Scots, and had:

12.  Lady Agnes Cumyn, who m. Gilbert, Baron de Umfraville, and had:

13.  Gilbert, Baron de Umfraville, Governor of the Castle of Forfar and the territory of Angus; Earl of Angus, in right of his wife; d. 1308; he m., 1243, Matilda, Countess of Angus, and had:

14.  Robert de Umfraville, second Earl of Angus, who had by his second wife, Lady Alianore:

15.  Sir Thomas de Umfraville, of Harbottle, younger son, who m., Lady Joane, daughter of Adam de Rodman, and had:

16.  Sir Thomas de Umfraville, Lord of Riddesdale and Kyme, who had by his wife, Lady Agnes:

17.  Lady Joane de Umfraville, who m. Sir William Lambert, of Owlton, Durham, and had:

18.  Robert Lambert, of Owlton (or Owton), father of:

19.  Henry Lambert, of Ongar, Essex, father of:

20.  Elizabeth Lambert, who m. Thomas Lyman, of Navistoke, Essex, d. 1509, and had:

21.  Henry Lyman, of Navistoke and High Ongar, who m. Alicia, daughter of Simon Hyde, of Wethersfield, Essex, and had:

22.  John Lyman, of High Ongar, d. 1587, at Navistoke, who had by his wife, Margaret, daughter of William Girard, of Beauchamp, Essex:

23.  Henry Lyman, of High Ongar, whose son:

24.  Richard Lyman, b. 1580, at High Ongar; removed to Roxbury, Mass., in 1631, and d. 1640, at Hartford, Conn., of which he was one of the original proprietors; he had issue, by his wife Sarah:

1.    Robert Lyman, who m. Hepzibah, daughter of Thomas Bascom.  Issue.

2.    Richard Lyman, of Windsor, d. 1662, who m. Hepzibah, daughter of Thomas Ford, and had:

                                         I.        Hepzibah, wife of Josiah Dewey

Since Hepzibah Lyman is my 9^th Great Grandmother, that would make Alfred the Great, King of England, my 35^th Great Grandfather.

The story of Josiah and Hepzibah Dewey will be continued in my next Mumblings post.

Friday Fotos - Today's Photos, Tomorrow's Memories

I didn't get out to take any photos this week for my blog, so I thought I would use today's Friday Fotos to post some old pictures that did not make it into my Monday Mumblings. I've titled this post "Today's Photos, Tomorrow's Memories" to share these old photos and try to encourage you to photographically capture people, places, and events of your life.

As I continue my hobby of collecting ancestral information, I am at times saddened that I find little or no photographic evidence of a person's life.  No pictures of the people, the places they lived, nor the events surrounding their lives.  However, when I do find old pictures, I arrange to scan the photos so that they may be shared with others.  I do not possess many of the photos that I post in Monday Mumblings.  Relatives have generously allowed me to scan their sole copy of the photos so that now, I may share them with you.  If you possess old family photos, please capture them digitally before they deteriorate and share them with others.  Do your best to identify the people, place, date, and event of the photo.  If you hear of old photos being thrown away, obtain them and find someone to donate them to.  There are many ways of locating families doing genealogical research who will be grateful if you find and give them these treasures.  If they relate to my family, please send me a copy.

On December 5, 2012 I posted Monday Mumblings - Thomas Milligan (1832 - 1901).  The post had a picture of Thomas' family with his first wife, Margaret Isabella Morrow who died September 23, 1863. Here is an additional picture of Thomas Milligan's second wife Elizabeth Thompson who he married on April 13, 1864.  Elizabeth died September 21, 1891. 

Elizabeth Thompson Milligan

On December 12, 2011 I posted Monday Mumblings - Thomas Milligan (1856 – 1937).  Here is another picture of Christina (McDonald) Milligan.

Christina McDonald Milligan

On December 19, 2011 I posted Rev. Herbert F. Milligan.  Here is a picture of Herbert and Effie with their singing daughters.

Effie, Emma, Lila (contralto), Bertha (mezzo-soprano), Alice (high soprano), and Herbert Milligan; Chris (low alto) missing from picture

On December 26, 2011 I posted Alice Bernice (Milligan) Tompkins.  Here are two school pictures of Alice.

Finally, on January 23, 2012, I posted on Harold Frederick Tompkins.  Here are two more pictures of Harold.  The second picture has Harold, his brother Sam, and Sam's son Preston.

Preston, Sam, and Harold

Monday Mumblings - The Tompkins Family (Post 3 of 3)

My first post on the Tompkins family listed the first 5 generations of Tompkins families in the U.S. from Ralph to John Tompkins.  The second post gave some additional history on the first 5 generations in the U.S. and then listed the Canadian families, generations 6 through 9, John Roger through James Bedford Tompkins.   This third post will provide a brief history of John Roger Tompkins and links to some family grave-sites.  It will also bring the Tompkins family up to modern times with information on my grandfather Harold Tompkins.  Harold through his marriage to Alice Milligan links this post with the previously posted Milligan family.

The Canadian Years - The Tompkins of Peel, Carleton County, New Brunswick, Canada

Six Tompkins brothers of the 6^th generation fought in the Loyal American Regiment on the side of England during the American Revolutionary War.  Muster records (see page 15 of linked pdf) show that John (corporal), Joseph, Elijah, and Roger (drummer) served under Captain Randle.  Edmund served under Captain Hatch and Obadiah under Captain Finlay.  John enlisted in the Loyal American Regiment on the 27th March 1777 and became a soldier of the Queen’s Rangers.  John, along with 546 other soldiers, was taken as a prisoner of war (see page 15 of linked pdf) at the Battle of Stony Point, NY.  Stony Point, 14 miles south of West Point, is now a state historic site.  For information about Stony Point historic site, click here.  John was a prisoner of war from 16 July 1779 - 1 Dec, 1782 at Easton, PA.  For source information on John's imprisonment, see The Royal Army in America During the Revolutionary War The American Prisoner Records pdf page 28 (George Washington Papers, Series 4, General Correspondence “Return of Prisoners Taken at Stoney Point on July 17th, 1779”) and pdf page 37 where John Tonkins is listed. After the war, John married Abigail Brewster.  Shortly thereafter, John and several of his brothers made their way to Canada, arriving in New Brunswick in 1783 from Westchester County, New York. 

At the close of the war the Tompkins came to New Brunswick and received grants of land in parish of Queensbury, named for the Queen's Rangers.  John and Roger were given grants in Nackawick, NB, Canada in 1784.  In 1786 John Roger and Roger Tompkins were given land grants in the present parish of Southampton.  In 1787, Elijah, Obadiah, John Jr. and Edmund Tompkins were granted Lots 20, 21, 23, and 25 respectively, north of the Shogomoc River.  Having become dissatisfied with their lands down the river, they all moved up the St John River, to Carleton County, where they received land grants in Wakefield. 

The following great grandparents are buried in the Lower Baptist East Florenceville Cemetery, Rte 105, Florenceville, Peel Parish, Carleton County, NB, Canada:

• Roger and Elizabeth (Guiggy) Tompkins (7^th generation) gravestone
• John and Jane (Finn) Tompkins (8^th generation) gravestone
• James Bedford Tompkins (9^th generation) gravestone

Harold Frederick Tompkins (10^th Generation)

Harold was born May 1, 1893 in the Parish of Peel, Carleton County, New Brunswick, CAN and he died August 28, 1953 in Reading, MA.  He married Alice Bernice Milligan (see post on Alice for list of residences) on July 7, 1921 at Machias, ME. 

Harold and Alice had 10 children:

Vera Milligan (1922 – 2010)

Daughter (abt. 1923)

Harold (1924 – 1924)

Milton Bedford (1925 – 2008)

Viola Mae (1929 – 2007)

Alice Lorraine (1933 – 1981)

Thomas Herbert (1936 – 1994)

Donald Freeman (1939 – 2010)

Richard (1942 – living)

Wayne (1948 – 1981)

During the First World War, Harold enlisted in the Canadian over-seas expeditionary force on November 5, 1915.  He served as a private in the 104^th Battalion in Canada, England, and France.  He received the British War and Victory Medals.  He was discharged on June 6, 1919 in Saint John, NB.

Harold Tompkins in WWI Uniform

Enlistment in Canadian Over-Seas Engagement Force

Discharge Papers

Harold and Alice moved to New York City after Easton, ME in around 1922.  My mother Vera told one story about there time in NYC.  Alice was pushing Vera on a walk through the city and she stopped to watch a movie being filmed.  She was asked if she and Vera wanted to be in the movie.  When she told Harold about this experience and he got mad.  Apparently, movies were not well thought of at the time.

Harold and Alice (Milligan) Tompkins

The family may have moved to Methuen, MA before 1925 as son Milton was born there.  According to birth records and stories from daughter Vera, they also lived in Charlestown, Somerville, Medford, and Woburn, MA before moving to Reading, MA in 1942.  In Charlestown, they lived at the foot of Bunker Hill on Monument Ave.  

Harold, Vera, and Sam (Harold's brother) in Charlestown, MA

Harold and Alice lived on Village St. after 1942 in a two family house.  The Arnold family lived on one side of the house from 1937 until the late 1940s.  Elizabeth (Dewey) Arnold was Donald Lester Dewey's sister. Elizabeth's daughter Jeanette played matchmaker and got her uncle Donald Dewey and neighbor Vera Dewey together.  Donald and Vera married in 1947.  

Front: Alice Lorraine, Harold, Tom, Alice, Don; Back: Vera, Milton, Viola (Photo about 1940)

Naturalization Certificate March 1, 1943

Harold worked as a pipe fitter for Hood Ice Cream.  His daughter Vera remembers Hood advertizing the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the "Hoodsie Cup" in 1997.  Vera was upset because she remembers Harold bringing home Hoodsie Cups to the neighbor kids much earlier than 1947, so she informed Hood that Hoodsies were older than 50 years.  Harold later worked for North Woburn Chemical Company.  He died of esophagus cancer.


Stories and memories of Harold:

Eileen (granddaughter):

"Alice saying of Harold, if his pants were on the bed post, she got pregnant".  Harold was a hard worker and always had a job. He was also generous to neighbors.  When he worked at Hood, he always brought dairy products and ice cream home and passed it out to all the neighborhood children. He would come home on a Friday night and get everyone all together and go out partying (and dancing).
 
Don (grandson):
Harold, his sons, and sons-in-law made beer. I remember playing in the Village St., Reading attic and finding a fiddle.  I believe that Vera said that Harold played the fiddle.  I heard that during World War II, Harold was a neighborhood warden.  One of his duties was to walk his neighborhood at night to ensure blackout, meaning that no lights were visible from the outside.

Bob (neighbor at Village St., Reading):
We lived next door til '48...I remember Harold as a truly nice man and his home was always full of warmth...

Friday Fotos - Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Plymouth got about an inch of snow overnight creating a visually beautiful landscape for our morning walk with Greta.

Leash comes off and ...

Away she goes

Stop sign seemingly saying "That means you!"

This building appears in many of my pictures

Web blackout, SOPA/PIPA support weakens

Just an update on yesterday's web blackout.  It appears that everyone's efforts yesterday had an effect on congressional support for the current SOPA and PIPA bills in congress.  These bills are not dead and they may still be modified, so keep your eyes and ears open to ensure that the web is not fundamentally changed for the worse.  Thanks to those who contacted their congressional senators and representatives.  They might feel pressured into doing the right thing especially during election years.

To read more, click here.

Fight for the Future - Stop Internet Censorship

Just a quick but important post here...

"On Jan 24th, Congress will vote to pass internet censorship in the Senate, even though the vast majority of Americans are opposed. We need to kill the bill - PIPA in the Senate and SOPA in the House - to protect our rights to free speech, privacy, and prosperity."

Read about these bills at:


   MSNBC - Wikipedia goes dark on piracy bill protest day

See this site for which web sites are striking and how to contact congress and for more information:


   Web Goes on Strike


I have sent emails to both my senators and my congressman.  Please consider sending a similar message to your congressman and senators.


Subject: 

Kill the bill - PIPA in the Senate and SOPA in the House

Message:   

I am writing to you as a voter in your district. I urge you to vote "no" on cloture for S. 968, the PROTECT IP Act, on Jan. 24th. The PROTECT IP Act is dangerous, ineffective, and short-sighted. It does not deserve floor consideration.  I urge my representative to vote "no" on SOPA, the corresponding House bill.

Over coming days you'll be hearing from the many businesses, advocacy organizations, and ordinary Americans who oppose this legislation because of the myriad ways in which it will stifle free speech and innovation.  We hope you'll take our concerns to heart and oppose this legislation by voting "no" on cloture.

Monday Mumblings - Thomas Dewey the Settler

“…it is fit and becoming thus to remember our fathers – fit toward them and becoming for us.  They who do not remember and revere their ancestors who have done worthy deeds are not likely to leave a posterity that will be worthy of being remembered.”

Quote by Reverend Orville Dewey, Sheffield Mass centennial celebration, June 1876 from Life of George Dewey Rear Admiral, U.S.N. (by Adelbert M. Dewey) and Dewey Family History (by Louis Marinus Dewey), 1898, Dewey Publishing Company, Westfield, MA, page 203.

I have been doing genealogy research on my ancestors for about 30 years.  Early on in my research, I found a book on the Dewey family in the Boston Public Library – Life of George Dewey Rear Admiral, U.S.N. (by Adelbert M. Dewey) and Dewey Family History (by Louis Marinus Dewey), 1898, Dewey Publishing Company, Westfield, MA.  (This book can be found on the web, but I cannot link to it. You can access it by internet search.)  The author, Louis Marinus Dewey, states that he started collecting family records 15 years prior to the publication of the book in 1898 and at the time of publication there were approximately 15,000 descendants of Thomas Dewey the Settler listed in the book.  Francis Osman Dewey (number 6293), my grandfather, is listed at the top of page 708.  Several years ago I had the good fortune to find this book on eBay and bought it for less than $10.   The following theories of Dewey Family Origin are from pages 206 and 207 in that book.  (The hyperlinks are obviously mine.)

Family Origin

“...  The Dewey was an old Feudal family in French Flanders, from which the town of Douai in France takes its name; some of the family came to England with William the Conqueror and settled in Lincolnshire, northeast of London.  One authority says a nobleman named de Wey (pronounced De Vay) came with William the Conqueror, after whom Weymouth, in Dorset, England, was named.

“…  Dewey or Dewi in Welsh is a corruption of David, and there is a tradition in some Dewey families that the origin of the race was in Wales where the patronymic was originally derived from Archbishop Dei, chosen patron saint of Wales; canonized by Pope Calixtus in 1120 as St. David; founder of monastery at Meneria, West Britain, now St. David’s Head, Wales, and in which the beautiful and imposing Cathedral of St. David now stands, and in which his remains repose, “OY Dewi” “House of David” being the most sacred spot in the kingdom to all true Welshmen. 

“In Burke’s Heraldry it is claimed that the name Dewey was originally “de la Wey.”  The ancestors came over with William the Conqueror and took this name… Another authority asserts that the name Dewey was originally De Ewes, and went from French Flanders into England in the reign of Henry VIII, when one branch of the family had the name “de vie,” another branch “Dewey,” as well as one branch of the name “Davie.”

“After the massacre on St. Bartholomew’s Eve, in August 1572, many thousands of families… left France for the Netherlands and England; in the latter country they erected silk manufactories, in the eastern suburb of London, and taught the Saxons to make the stuffs and hats of which France had long enjoyed the monopoly.  In England these people were known as Walloons, and landing at Sandwich, England; Norwich was one of the cities to give them the most welcome, and in a few years there fifteen hundred Walloons in that place alone.

“Thomas Dewey, the Settler at Dorchester, Mass., sailed from Sandwich, which leads us to believe he was of the Huguenot extraction; his descendants, even in the second generation, were millers, carpenters, and wheelwrights.  In the third generation the sons of Israel were weavers, tailors, etc., which is strong evidence to support this position.”

Thomas Dewey, the Settler (1^st Generation)

Thomas was born in 1602 in England and died on April 27, 1648 at Windsor, CT.  He married Francis (Clark from previous marriage) on March 22, 1638 at Windsor, CT.  Francis was born in 1611 in England and died on September 27 1690 at Westfield, MA. 

Thomas and Francis had 5 children:

Thomas (1640 – 1690)

Josiah (about 1641 – 1732)*

Anna (about 1643 – 1707)

Israel (1645 – 1678)

Jedediah (1647 – 1715)

Francis had 2 children Joseph and Mary by her first husband Joseph Clark.  Francis married a third time to George Phelps in 1649.  Francis and George Phelps had 3 children Jacob, John, and Nathaniel.

Thomas Dewey’s History

The Puritan Great Migration refers to the years between 1620 and 1640 when approximately 20,000 colonists came to New England.  The families of the Great Migration first settled in Plymouth, Salem, and Boston/Dorchester, MA.  My ancestors were part of this migration with ancestors settling in each of these colonies.

At this time, I do not know the town where Thomas Dewey lived in England nor do I know exactly when he came to New England.  However, I do know that Dewey was in Dorchester, MA by August of 1633 because “his mark” is found as witness on the will of John Russell.  Other witnesses on this will are (Rev.) John Warham’s and Thomas Moore.  Early Dorchester, MA town records show that on August 12, 1635, Dewey and Thomas Holcomb sold their land in Dorchester to Richard Joanes.  In 1635, 60 or more settlers, led by Rev. John Warham moved to Windsor, CT.  Thomas Dewey, Rev. John Warham, John Russell and Thomas Holcomb are all listed as “founders” of Windsor, CT.  I list these other names (Warham, Holcomb, and Russell) because it is evident by these documents that Dewey was closely associated with these men.  Warham and Holcomb show up on the passenger list for the Ship Mary & John which was one of the Winthrop Fleet of ships.  Dewey and Russell do not show up on any ships passenger list, but it may be possible to assume that Dewey was also on the Mary & John because of his association with Warham and Holcomb.

Dorchester, MA

Dewey certainly landed and settled in Dorchester, MA (between 1630 – 1633).  The Dorchester Atheneum says that the “the farmers settled on Allen’s Plain near the intersection of Pond, Cottage and Pleasant Streets.”  The oldest house in Boston, the James Blake House (1648), is located near this intersection. (See the “William Meaney Playground in the same block for the actual intersection.)  In Dewey’s Dorchester land sale to Richard Joanes, he sold 4 acres with house and belongings, and 4 other lots of 8 acres, 10 acres, 4 acres, and 2 acres.

Windsor, CT

Thomas’ name appears on a monument in memory of the original founders of Windsor.  Various documents list the land holdings of Thomas Dewey.  His home lot is shown on an early map just to the north and outside the Palisado of Windsor.  The Palisado was built in 1637 as a result of the Pequot war.  Thomas’ will lists six children: Mary Clark (Francis daughter from her marriage to Joseph Clark), Thomas, Josiah, Annah, Isreall, and Jydidiah.

Cousins Donald Dewey and Donald Gonsalves (10th generation) point to Thomas Dewey name on Windsor, CT founders monument

Thos. Dewey house lot shown just above the "Palisado" on old Windsor, CT map

Friday Fotos - Plymouth Center, Scusset Beach, and Cape Cod Canal

I had an appointment in downtown Plymouth on Tuesday morning.  The weather was sunny and warm for a day in January, so I brought my camera along.  I thought I wouldn't be out for long, but I was enjoying myself so much that I kept extending day.  I started shooting some pictures down by the fishing pier, moved on to the Jenney Grist Mill, wound my way down the shore road to Scusset Beach, and ended my 3 hour photo journey at the northern end of the Cape Cod Canal.  Here are some of the pictures that I took.

Foul weather must have driven this boat to the roof of a building on the fishing pier

Plymouth received a dusting of snow overnight

Capt. John's fleet settled in for the winter

There were two swans sleeping in this morning on the pond at Jenney Grist Mill

Comfy or cold?  I like the reflections of the swans and trees in the water

Bridge over the pond

Cape Cod Canal Harbor Patrol

Objects on the beach

Nobody swimming today

A Coast Guard helicopter was practicing maneuvers over the canal, you can barely see it in the picture, but the water below is reeling from the down draft of the rotors

Warning horn, you don't want to be near it when it blasts

Coast Guard saw me taking pictures and decided to fly right overhead to give me a nice photo op, thanks you to the unknown pilot

Support beams for the Sagamore Bridge, reminds me a bit of the Statue of Liberty's crown

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sagamore Bridge from an unusual angle

Sitting in the parking lot next to the canal, I couldn't help but notice all the windmills that have gone up in recent years.  There are two new windmills visible right across the Sagamore Bridge and then two more down by the Bourne Bridge.  (Four more have gone up in Kingston next to Route 3 seemingly overnight.)  Looking east across the canal, it was interesting to notice the old-style wooden windmill of the Christmas Tree Shop with two new modern windmills about 1 mile away.  The sun was right over the windmills, so I could not get a good picture of the old and new.  Guess I will have to return another day.

Monday Mumblings - The Tompkins Family (Post 2 of 3)

In compiling the 3 posts on the Tompkins family (the early U.S. years, the Canadian years, and our modern day ancestor Harold Tompkins), it might be of interest to describe the history or these eras.  

The Early Years in the U.S. (see Jan. 2, 2012 post)

Ralph Tompkyns (50), his wife Katherine (58), and three children Elizabeth (18), Marie (14), and Samuel (22) came to the U.S on the ship Truelove which landed in Plymouth, MA in 1635. There is no ship record indicating when Ralph’s other sons Nathaniel, Micah, and John Tompkins came to the U.S., but it must have been at about the same time as John appears in the records of Salem, MA on March 20, 1636.  

With the English population in New England around 5,000 in 1635, why would the Tompkins (Tompkyns) come to the U.S.?  There is no specific information on why they came to New England, but we might speculate that the Tompkins family came because they were Puritans.  The years 1620 – 1640 has been called the “Great Migration”.   During these years, early English settlers came primarily to Massachusetts or to the West Indies in family groups to seek religious freedom and to practice their Puritan religion.  Ralph and his descendants lived many years in Salem, MA, home to John Endicott “a zealous and somewhat hotheaded Puritan”.  Endicott sailed for New England on 20 June 1628. 

Ralph’s grandson John Jr. was born 1644 in Salem, MA.  John Jr. moved with his family to Eastchester, NY in the 1660s probably shortly after the Dutch surrendered to the British (1664).    Albany remained under British rule until the American Revolution.  John Jr. had a son Edmund who had a son John Roger Tompkins.  John Roger enlisted in the Loyal American Regiment on 27 Mar 1777 and fought to remain an English colony.  John Roger we Has as a taken prisoner of war 16 Jul 1779.  After the war, John Roger and family moved to New Brunswick with other Loyalist in 1783.  Before leaving New York, he married Abigail Brewer of Dutch ancestry.  

The Canadian Years

      6.  John Roger (1758 – 1833) moved to New Brunswick, Canada 1783
      7.  Roger (1789 – 1885)
      8.  John (1833 – 1901) 

      9.  James Bedford/Burden/Burton/Bertram (1866 – 1957)

John Roger Tompkins (6^th Generation)

John Roger was born in 1758 in Westchester, NY.  He married Abigail Brewer in 1780.  Abigail was born in 1758 and died in 1843.  John was a Loyalist and immigrated to New Brunswick, Canada in 1783 after the Revolutionary War.  He died in 1833.

John and Abigail had 10 children:

John (1784 – 1872)

Roger (1789 – 1885)*

Abigail (1791 – 1874)

Nehemiah (1794 – 1884)

James (1796 – 1824)

Sarah (1799 – 1887)

Elizabeth (1801 – 1897)

Mary (1802 – 1871)

Joseph (1804 – 1860)

Elisha (1807 – 1878)

Roger Tompkins (7^th Generation)

Roger was born in 1789 and died in 1885.  He married Elizabeth Guiggy in New Brunswick.  Elizabeth was born before 1793 in Peel, Carleton County, New Brunswick and died in 1879.

Roger and Elizabeth (Guiggy) Tompkins gravestone can be found in the Lower Baptist East Florenceville Cemetery, Rte 105, Florenceville, Peel Parish, Carleton County, NB, Canada.

 

Roger and Elizabeth had 11 children:

William Urban (1812 - ?)

Hannah (1814 – 1893)

Mary (1816 - ?)

Ruth (1818 - ?)

Phebe (1820 – 1876)

George (1821 - ?)

James Burden (1824 – 1887)

Edmund (1826 – 1900)

Obadiah (1827 – 1885)

Kezia (1830 – 1914)

John (1833 – 1901)

John Tompkins (8^th Generation)

John was born January 1833 and died July 12, 1901 in Peel, Carleton County, NB, CAN.  He married Jane Finn January 15, 1856 in Peel.   Jane was born in 1837 and died March 13, 1906 in Peel.  John and Jane (Finn) Tompkins gravestone can be found in the Lower Baptist East Florenceville Cemetery, Rte 105, Florenceville, Peel Parish, Carleton County, NB, Canada.

John and Jane had 8 children:

Ada Elnora (1857 – 1937)

Chas W. (1859 - ?)

William Bedford (1864 – 1891)

James Bedford (1866 – 1957)*

Allen (1868 – 1894)

Samuel (1871 – 1887)

Fanny (1877 - ?)

Laura (1878 – 1879)

James Bedford Tompkins (9^th Generation)

James Bedford (aka Burden, Burton, Bertram) was born October 17, 1866 in Peel, Carleton County, NB, CAN and died April 7, 1957 in Florenceville, Carleton County, NB, CAN.  James married Mary Edna Harmon, daughter of Avard Harmon, on October 20, 1885 in Peel, Carleton County, NB, CAN.  Mary Edna left James and moved to Oakland, CA with two of her sons and opened a nursing home.  James Bedford Tompkins gravestone can be found in the Lower Baptist East Florenceville Cemetery, Rte 105, Florenceville, Peel Parish, Carleton County, NB, Canada.

James and Mary had 12 children:

Eber Maurice (1886 – 1976)

Herbert Elias (1889 – 1944)

Samuel (1891 - ?)

Harold Frederick (1893 – 1953)*

Inez Lillian (1895 – 1987)

Allan Weldon (1897 – 1978)

Willard Howard (1900 – 1930)

Edna (1901 - ?)

Willie (1902 -1902)

Grace Amanda (1906 – 1992)

Hildred (1911 - ?)

Laura (1912 – 1912)

James Bedford Tompkins

Mary Edna (Harmon) Tompkins

Mary Edna Harmon